Eyes of Taint
by Fidgety Otter
Summary: Alex Tamora, 23, a bouncer, a runaway, and being recruited to fight the rising denizens of shadow while dealing with her infatuation with a shadow creature despite the warnings.


I stood in the entrance to my bedroom, my machete gripped in my right hand, and my towel held tight against me with my left, glaring at this familiar form tearing apart my closet. "The hell are you doing Kali?" she pulled herself out of my closet, eyes wide on her milk chocolate colored face, framed by her blonde curls. She glanced up and down my body. I held myself ridged. I accepted this about her, but it always left me feeling self conscious.

"I'll be right with you sweetie." She winked, launching herself back into my closet, clothes flying out, torn from their resting place.

"Dammit Kali, I thought I was getting robbed." With a sigh I set the machete down against the wall, and went into the living room of my apartment and back into the bathroom to finish drying off. It was a pretty thread bare apartment, only enough to make a decent life between sleep and work. I closed the door behind me and glanced into the mirror. Compared to Kali my reflection was a dull shadow of a person. Pale, dull brown hair, grey invisible eyes, five foot tiny, with very little reason to wear a bra.

There was a knock at the door. "Hey Cutie, do you have any dresses, you know that thing with a skirt? Feminine?"

"What do you think?" If I wore a dress to work it would have been harder for the bar hoppers at the 13th Step to respect me, or to deal with those that already didn't.

"That's okay, I brought something cute just in case." She opened the door, as I clung to the towel for some form of protection from her, she tossed in a dark duffle, hitting me against the hip. There were two choices in front of me: dress in whatever is in this bag, or wander out there in a towel again with Kali waiting out there. Now I'm no homophobe but... Duffle bag it was.

"Can I get some underwear?" It seemed to take forever while I used the hair dryer for her to get something for me to wear. Eventually she peeped the door open and she held up a lacy bra, with matching panties. For a moment I gaped at them. The lace would chaf against my flesh, and as I stared all I could say was, "Those aren't mine."

"I bought them for you."

"You really are pushing for that restraining order aren't you." I grabbed them wanting just to be dressed and out of this situation. I glanced over the duffle on the counter, ready for the next step of my transformation.

The strong purple colred silk sat on top under the zipper, I grabbed it by a slender strap and held it up. It looked like a tank top with frill. The silk clung and the frill hung off the shoulder. The pants under it were a snug fit with a cold chain that hugged higher on the hips with how low the pants sat. The sides of the pants were open to flair with a shimmering star pattern stuck between the denim. Skimpy top, chain belt, bell bottoms? Kali style.

"You happy?" I stepped out of the bathroom and Kali was sitting there with popcorn, eyes wide and expecting. The grin spread across her face, and I knew she was pleased, but I wondered where the popcorn came from, must have brought it in with her. Yeah, she's my best friend, a creeper, but the only friend I have been able to keep during the seven years here in Portland.

"Very, you ready to go partying?"

"Don't you mean ready for work?" I walked over and grabbed my jacket, the end of it bunched up under my hips. I glanced at the sling. It would sit over my shoulder on one side, hugging the full length of the machete against my back. But it would make sitting hard since it would be tickling the end of the coat. If I sat it would get propped up and over my shoulder, waving to everyone.

"I consider working at a bar a party."

"Well obviously you don't have to worry about boys acting like you should bow to them and say 'yes sir please come in and trash this place and get me fired despite the fact you're obviously a 17 year old with a glandular problem.'"

"Nope, cause most men know their place. And that is licking the grime off my heels."

"Got to love your fantasty world." I left the sling and machete next to the front door, thinking about how it would cut into my skin with this excuse of a top on. I grabbed my wallet and stashed it into the pockets inside the coat next to my keys. I went towards the door, Kali following close behind. "So did you plan on driving with me?"

"No thanks, I'm probably not going to be there the entire time." We left the apartment and went to our cars, mine belonged in a junk yard, no one would mess with it, no reason to. But Kali's was a miracle car. Beautiful, expensive, and no one even so much as smudged it.

The bar was still pretty slow, only a couple people populated the second level where there were tables set up for those still eating from the day menu. Frank met me at the door.

"You were almost late."

"Thank Kali." her arms wrapped around my shoulder, pressing against the back of my neck.

"She's adorable, can you blame me?" He waved away her words and got out of our way to the back room where I ditched my jacket.

"Alex, what are you wearing?" Frank's voice acussingly molested my spine. I felt guilty for not looking the part.

"Kali." I shook my head trying to get my head back into the thought process of pissing people off, or turning them away from the door as commonly understood. A stool was positioned in front of the door, with a line waiting to be allowed in. And I got to be the person to stare at ID after ID. But I did have Frank and Kali to thank for this life. They were the ones who found me years ago when I ran away from Las Vegas and the life there to Portland Oregon. They worked together to get me the apartment Kali broke into earlier that day, and this job as a bouncer.

Sitting there the line moved decently along, some were turned away, but it was a slow night for drama.

"Having fun love?" the booze hit me before she wrapped her arms over my shoulder, nuzzling the top of my head.

"No, please stop that."

"But you know you love me." I sighed as she turned out from behind my stool and danced to the music on the first level. Eyes followed her across the floor. The 13th step had three levels, the first was a dance floor, the second had the tables for the drinkers, and the third was off limits for Corsone's group. Frank told me the first day I worked to let Corsone, his group, and anyone they bring through, unquestioned. There were rumors about the criminal activity they were apart of, and truthfully? I believed them.

A man coughed at the entry way, he held out two things: his ID, and his four months 12th step chip.

I stood up on the stool, holding the man's hand and his chip up. "This man's ready for the last step!" The bartender nodded at me, he would set the man up with a free drink to celebrate finishing the twelve step program. The wall behind the bar was covered with these babies, the chips were collected when they gave him his drink.

As I let go of his hand and tried to sit down, his hand bushed against the front of my top. I shrugged it off, but Kali's eyes narrowed, and a bad taste of forboding crowded my mouth.

"Hey! Don't touch her." Kali stamped up to him, glaring at him.

"It was an accident." He stepped forward to go up to the bartender, his hands were searching all the ends of his shirt and sleeves for something.

"I bet it was, apologize to her."

"Look I don't need this." He started for the bar, as she reached for his throat.

"Kali," I pulled her away from the man before she got her hold, "Ignore him, there is no reason to get yourself and him kicked out yet. Besides, he isn't worth it." She sighed, she turned her head and glared at him before nodding at me. She turned to dance some more, her moves a little more ridged, but eyes still followed her. But something was weird about her. People complained and moaned in line. I looked at the ID's but I kept looking up at Kali trying to figure out what was different. Then I noticed the pointy ears sticking out between her curls.

"Kali. When did you get prosthetics?"

She stopped dancing, squinting at me.

"Your ears?"

"Alex, can you-?"

"Miss Tamora." Albert Kuzzer stood in the entrance, glaring around at the club, it was full of dancers and drunks, there were a few people hanging out up on the third level staring down at the entrance, many were standing up on the third floor, waiting. Behind him was his brother Vincent, and between them was Louis Corsone himself. The Kuzzer brothers were twins in their mid-thirties, they were towering giants with rounded muscular chests, which they both liked to show off. If not for the sake of muscles, but the fact that they wanted to show off their body hair which always made me twitch in the stomach just a little inside. Thank goodness I had seen worse in Vegas so I could hold my gags. They both had long hair pulled back, but Abert had a white patch across his collar bones and Vincent had his patch on the back of his neck. I was curious about the stories behind them, but never suicidal enough to ask.

Corsone was probably in his early fourties. He was shorter than the boys, but still a good foot taller than me. He typically stared out at nothing over his signature scarf. His sandy hair slicked back, his body almost as slender as mine.

"Mr. Kuzzer." I nodded back as he called me by my last name. They paused between Kali and me.

"Kali, do say hello to your cousin for me." Vincent turned his head to look at Kali, and something around his head shimmered like summer heat and for a moment there were horns sticking out from his head, as well as a snout. I shook my head, I must have needed more sleep. Kali glanced between the brothers and myself, her skin seemed to ashen. For a moment Corsone turned his head, looking in my direction. Something slithered across my neck, through my hair, I shuddered.

Kali took a step towards me, but looked back at Mr Corsone. "Alex, I'm gonna head out." The boys continued up to the third level, and she rushed me. "Take care of yourself, please, please, please be careful." She kissed my forehead, most likely leaving red lipstick marks before leaving, back straight, she tossed her hair, causing many men to turn and stare.


End file.
